A YOUNG WOMAN'S INSIGHT INTO THE HUMAN HEART

 My Surprising Conversation with Bethany

by Brad Scheelke

   Bethany (about 22) came to Oasis Books and Conversation September 11 and asked about a specific Tolkien essay. We chatted about Tolkien and CS Lewis and I asked if she was a student at USU. She was and I told her about Professor Kleiner and his class on Tolkien and Lewis. She was unaware but interested. The conversation turned to Viktor Frankl and his vision that we live by our awareness of meaning. She expressed curiosity about not hearing of him. I opened his favorite of his books and read from the preface about our lack of ability to choose to love, to choose to believe, to choose to hope, or to choose to choose. She agreed and was intrigued.

     I told her I thought she was a fully valuable person. She smiled and thanked me. This accelerated our conversation as we discussed implications and applications of this. 

She told me about her LDS mission to Brazil, from which she recently returned. She mentioned meeting many troubled people there who had been treated as worthless. When we talked about the importance of good expectations, she mentioned trying to do good. I pointed to the chalkboard behind me (shown here) and asked what she thought of it. She liked it. I then asked the difference between her word trying and the word trust on the chalkboard. She said trying focused on her ability and trust focused on God. I heartily affirmed her words and told her I often discuss this difference, but few people seem to notice the difference as she had. We discussed some implications of the difference.

What does the natural man (the flesh) want to do?

I asked what she thought of the natural man being an enemy of God. She said it was true, said the flesh and the natural man were the same thing, and then surprised me by saying the natural man wants to be alone and do good without God's help. I joyfully affirmed her words and asked how she learned this as nearly all of the many with whom I discuss the natural man have said the flesh wants to do bad things. She disagreed with them. I told her that it took me years, some significant frustration, and finally honesty about my confusion before I noticed the scriptures teach what she said:  the flesh longs to achieve good. She said she didn’t read it in a book or learn it on her mission. She just knew it.

What is corrupt about the human heart?

I asked her to read Jeremiah 17:9 to me. 

“The heart is more deceitful than all else and is desperately sick; who can understand it?”       -Jeremiah 17:9

She did and agreed fully with it even though it was new to her. I then told her I had memorized this verse in college as a new Christian, later memorized the context, and in reading it much over the years was blind to what the context said about the meaning of the deceitfulness of the human heart. 

I asked her to read verses 5-9 to me and tell me what the wickedness of the heart concerns.

“Thus says the LORD,

"Cursed is the man who trusts in man,

And makes flesh his strength,

whose heart turns away from the LORD.

For he will be like a bush in the desert

And will not see when prosperity comes,

But will live in stony wastes in the wilderness,

a land of salt without inhabitant.”

“Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD

And whose trust is the LORD.

For he will be like a tree planted by the water,

that extends its roots by a stream

And will not fear when the heat comes;

But its leaves will be green,

And it will not be anxious in a year of drought

Nor cease to yield fruit.”

“The heart is more deceitful than all else 

And is desperately sick;

Who can understand it?”

-Jeremiah 17:5-9

She read it aloud and said the heart turns away from trusting God's strength and turns to trusting in human strength. She said the flesh is human strength. She liked Jeremiah's illustration of two plants in the desert, one nourished by a stream of water and one not. She saw trust as the issue and the object of trust as the difference. 

Is the fruit of the Spirit

 the result of possessing the Spirit or of trusting the Spirit?

I then told her the Apostle Paul says something similar to Jeremiah in one of his letters, but he leaves a word implied which Jeremiah declares openly. 

I turned to Galatians and asked her to read to me Galatians 5:16-25. She did and we discussed the word Jeremiah states and Paul implies. Does Paul imply trust or possession? Does Paul mean trusting the Spirit bears good fruit or possessing the Spirit bears good fruit? Does he mean trusting the flesh results in bad things or possessing the flesh results in bad things?

   “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

    "If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.”   

 -Galatians 5:16-25

She clearly saw the difference and said Paul’s point is all about trust and not about possession. Good things come out of our lives while we trust the Spirit and bad things come out of us while we trust the flesh—while we trust human ability to do good. I said in my circles people say possessing the Spirit bears good fruit and not possessing the Spirit results in bad things, and that this way of thinking easily leads sensitive people into discouragement when they see their performance as lacking.

What does it mean that God is the source of all goodness?

The conversation then turned to comparison to Christ. She said we should always make moral comparisons to Christ and never to other people. We discussed how this changes our view of ourselves and others—we identify with people rather than against them. We realize we all are together in the same boat as failures. I asked if thinking about Christ brought anything else to mind about what Christ did. She said that God revealed his love by sending Christ to die on the cross. She said that Christ’s death took care of all her sin, shame and guilt. We discussed the power of remembering to see a person as a fully valuable person; remembering to make comparison to Christ; and remembering that Christ died to take care of all sin. We discussed our practical experience of self-condemning thoughts and bad reactions toward others.

What does it mean that God is the source of all goodness?

 We then discussed how God is the source of all goodness and how we have no ability to be a source of goodness. As the sun is the source of all light shining from it and the moon, so God is the source of all spiritual light shining from Him and from all of us. We bear God’s image but not his reality. We are image-bearers who receive God’s goodness and overflow with it to others, while we are in our proper place of focus on his goodness. We are receivers and not achievers of the goodness we sense we need. 

The surprise of being a co-lover with God

 Then we talked about the nature of love and how our sense of love can mislead us. Since it is good to love we think we can love directly. Yet we often fail to love. Why? The surprise is that God calls us to love indirectly, to co-love with him. I do this by seeing him love a person. And while I see him loving the person his love overflows from my heart toward that person. 

At some point Bethany's eyes filled with tears. I gave her The Spirit is Moving and Thankfulness and Confession, urging her to begin thanking the Father for what Christ had done for her. She asked me for the Jeremiah reference. I gave her my card and wrote the Jeremiah and Galatians references. I urged her to get these things deep in her heart as many people are struggling in life and need to hear this message from her because they are confused about trying and about the flesh as well as forgetting to make comparison to Christ. I said all this is a heavy load for them. 

She said she is on campus only on Wednesdays for an LDS Institute class. I told her that was my day on campus to give away free books to students. I urged her to stop at the table on Wednesday for a free copy of Frankl's book.

 _____________________________

On Wednesday September 23, while I was at USU with the free book table, Bethany came to Oasis to talk. I wasn’t there and she wrote the following note for me.

 “I wanted to thank you for giving me a new perspective on Christ’s atonement. I really liked our conversation a few weeks ago. I hope you have a fantastic day!

-Bethany”

 

HAVE YOU ENDURED TO THE END? I did 41 years ago

"He who endures to the end will be saved." 

This statement by Jesus is recorded in Matthew 10:22; 24:13 and Mark 13:13. Jesus makes a similarly puzzling statement in the parable of the sower in Luke 8:13 in speaking of those who believe for a while and subsequently fall away from believing.

• Did Jesus really mean that enduring to the end was a condition of salvation?
• Was Jesus exaggerating?
• What does it mean to endure to the end?
• Is it possible you are confused about this?

I have met more than a few Christians who stumble into anxiety when they read or hear these words of Jesus. Have you ever had that experience?

I once heard a preacher friend declare boldly in a sermon the meaning of these words. He said you could believe the gospel for thirty years and then stop believing the gospel and prove that you never really believed the gospel. Do you agree with my friend? If you don't agree, why not? Is his boldness too much for you? Is his statement of thirty years too long for you? Do you feel sorry for him that he totally missed the point of Jesus' words? If your experience as a Christian is anything like mine you had a different response. You had a gut feeling that something was wrong with his explanation. You can't put your finger on the issue, but you know something is wrong or at least missing. I responded this way my first 35 years in Christ whenever I heard or read a milder form of my friend's explanation.

The reason for this gut feeling 

John 3:16 declares the simplicity of the truth of the gospel. "For God in this way loved the world that he gave his only begotten son so that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." To believe in Christ results in a person having eternal life and freedom from destruction. Are you persuaded that John 3:16 is true? Are you confident that Christ's work on the cross is all the work you need to enter into Christ and have eternal life? Many non-Christians have told me that personal works as well as Christ's work on the cross was necessary for a person to be right with God forever. Have you heard that? Do those words cheer you or lead you to pity the speaker? It is obvious. If you are a Christian as I am, you know personally and certainly that resting in Christ's death in our place is enough to be at peace with God.

To endure to the end means to believe the gospel. If it doesn't, then either Jesus was confused or he was misquoted. Why then did he describe believing the gospel as enduring to the end? In short, context.

What is the context?

Jesus came into our world at a point of history. He died on the cross at a point in history. He knew he was going to die for the sins of the world to reconcile sinners to God. And he told his disciples he was going to do it. Before creation the Father planned to send the Son to be the savior of the world. (1Peter 1:19f)  This was Jesus' purpose and goal for himself in coming into the world. Isn't this what we Christians say?

Jesus also had a goal and purpose for his disciples and all other people. His purpose for them was for them to join him in his purpose and vision of life. In other words, Jesus wanted to give people a new way of life. He wanted people to be free from the pressure of their sins. He wanted people to boast in God's love revealed in the cross rather than in human performance. We see this clearly in the gospel writings. Did the disciples grasp Jesus' purpose for them? Did they urge Jesus on to the cross so they could receive forgiveness through his blood and receive the promised spirit of God? No. They were worse than clueless. After three years of ministry Jesus mentioned the cross for the first time (Matt. 16:21ff). Peter rebuked Jesus for this. Jesus turned and rebuked Peter in front of the others, declaring the absolute necessity of the cross as the way of following him. Shock and silence followed. Why? Their hope was in their temple and the system of law and sacrifices given by God to Moses over 1000 years earlier. They couldn't imagine why Jesus would talk about dying as a sacrifice for sin. They were blind to their own prophet's clear teaching of a coming new way of forgiveness. They were so confused they couldn't even muster a fumbling question to request Jesus to explain himself.

Again, Jesus' goal and purpose was to get to the cross to free his people from their sins. The disciples' goal and purpose was for him to free them from Roman domination. The four gospels record Jesus winning the hearts of the people though compassion and miracles. But when he turned his teaching to the cross, they sneered and lost interest. His words couldn't break through the hardness of their hearts. People began falling away from following him. His closest followers abandoned him the night before the cross. This is obvious. So what is the big deal?

Our problem is that we are culturally distant from Jesus' context. I easily get tricked to read the events of Jesus' life as if they were lessons to help me know the right things to do. In doing this I miss the story of Jesus' relationship with his close followers, with the multitudes of onlookers and with the leaders of Israel. Ever had my problem?

What does end mean?

Here is the big surprise. Jesus said a person must endure to the end to be saved. What does the word end mean? I suspect that you think the word end means something about time running out, like in the end of a class, exam or sporting event. And in this context you think that enduring to the end means believing the gospel until your last breath on earth. True? In English the word end usually means this, but not always. Look on your Bible app for the Greek word translated end. Look closely at the definition given. Do it before you read on and see if you notice where I am going. The Greek word translated as end is telos. At Biblehub.com the definition is given as end-goal or purpose. We occasionally use the English word end to mean purpose or end-goal, but not often.

Thus Jesus said a person needs to endure to the purpose to be saved. What purpose? Jesus' purpose, not his disciples' or yours. Jesus' telos (purpose) was to create a new way of life through his death and resurrection. If you are a Christian you are alive in Christ and no longer dead in sin. You have been adopted into God's family. You are free to live as a righteous child of the king of glory. The hamster wheel of human performance is no longer your identity. Christ is now your life and his sin-bearing love is your new motivation to love others. You have a new song in your heart: "It is finished!" By the way, in Greek these three words are one word, a form of telos. Hmmm... You don't merely have a new label. You have a real experience with God in union with Christ. You are no longer an outsider to God. The moment you believed the gospel you entered into Christ and were in his telos (purpose), you had come home. You endured to the telos (end-goal, purpose) Christ desired for you. Now he is free to be your life and to overflow from you by his spirit to everyone you encounter. All the pressure is on him and he can handle it. I endured to Christ's telos (end-goal, purpose) 41 years ago. How about you?

A Hint from the Westminster Shorter Catechism

Most Christians are unaware of the Westminster Shorter Catechism written in the 1600's. For those who are aware of it, have you considered its first and most famous question as you pondered Jesus' words about enduring to the end?  

Q: What is the Chief end of man?
A: Man's chief end is to glorify God, and enjoy him forever. 

What is the chief purpose of man? Man's chief purpose is to glorify God, and to enjoy him always. The first step in glorifying God is to believe the gospel. This means totally abandoning oneself to the work of Christ on the cross. The next step is to maintain focus on Christ's work whatever one's circumstance. Keep boasting in the cross. You can't keep boasting in the cross until you do it for the first time. Have you entered into God's purpose for you, i.e., have you believed the gospel and boasted in the cross in your heart for the first time? If so, you have already endured to the end. Now that you are in the end--in God's purpose for you--why not keep boasting in God's purpose for you? Why get distracted from the cross to boast in human performance? 

The spiritual battle rages. God's way is for us to always boast in Christ's work on the cross. The world continually and intensely pressures us away from the cross to boast in human work. Is enduring to the end about boasting in the cross or about focusing on (boasting in) some human performance as a requirement or an evidence of salvation? Let's be honest. If you don't think you can get tricked away from boasting in the cross, then likely you are far more gullible than you think. Our traditional view of enduring to the end is about boasting in human performance. 


Why endurance?

Why did Jesus say that we needed to experience endurance in order to make it to the telos (to his purpose)? Again use your Bible app on endure.  Biblehub.com says that this word literally means to remain under. Under what? Jesus' disciples objected to Jesus' new teaching about the cross. Jesus didn't give up on them. He kept telling them about the cross. They kept opposing the cross. All the way to the cross they rejected the message of the cross. When Jesus died they despaired as their old hopes were crushed. Something changed when they encountered Jesus after his resurrection. They were now ready to listen to his crazy message. He explained in detail the meaning of his life, death, resurrection and more from all the scriptures. Jesus spoke to them for 40 days, ascended to heaven and then poured out his spirit on them at Pentecost. All but Judas (who had killed himself) remained under Jesus teaching for those 40 days. Sometime in that period the message of the cross broke their blind trust in their temple system and in their own righteousness. They moved their trust to the message of the cross. They believed the gospel. They embraced Jesus' telos. "Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the message of Christ."  

While at university I heard the gospel clearly for the first time. I strongly opposed it. Since I liked the Christians I joined their activities. I subjected myself to their words of the cross at Bible study, prayer meetings, church and more. I wanted some excuse to leave their company as the message bothered me. But I endured (remained under) the message of the cross for months until finally the message broke my self-righteous pride and I trusted in Christ as all my righteousness. Catch that? I remained under the hearing of the gospel until I had Isaiah's experience of seeing myself as a ruined sinner, embracing Christ and being purified by God. 

My father-in-law endured to Christ's telos (purpose) a few days before he died at 89. He had heard the good news in church all his life. He learned the right answers in Sunday school. He married a pastor's daughter. He used to tell me that others were wrong to trust in their good works for salvation and that Christ's work was enough. Whenever I made it personal for him as to why God should let him into heaven, he never mentioned the work of Christ and always told me of various good things he had done. But when he told my wife that he was ready to die because he knew that he was a good person, she told him that he was a sinner like everyone else. For three hours she reasoned with him about sin, righteousness and judgment. This broke his confidence in his own righteousness and he entered into Christ. He lived as a Christian in Christ's telos for a few days before going to glory. He had remained under the hearing of the gospel for over 80 years before the message broke through. 

Much has simplified and clarified in my reading of the gospels after stumbling onto a simple double question. Did Jesus say this before or after the cross and does it matter? Very few of Jesus' recorded words were spoken after the cross. Nearly all were spoken to God's dear lost sheep under the Mosaic law--the Old Covenant. It matters that Jesus spoke his words before the cross. Nearly all his words were spoken in anticipation of the cross, which is the door into Pentecost, which is the celebration of Christ and his work as all our life. We don't anticipate the cross and Pentecost. We look back to them. 

Pentecost is God's telos come to earth. He anticipated us sharing in his life. He delights for us to share in his purpose. His purpose for us is to be satisfied with his goodness (Jeremiah 31:14) and to have peace because he has done all our work for us (Isaiah 26:12). The way into this satisfaction is to remain under the hearing (as long as it takes) of the message of the cross--Christ's flawlessness and substitution. The message of the cross needs to be preached if lost people are to remain under the hearing of this message. The message of the cross applies to all aspects of my life and yours. Let's preach the cross continually, boldly and joyfully, first to ourselves, and then to a dying world until we go to glory. Christ is all of life for all people.